THEY TOLD ME IF I VOTED FOR JOHN MCCAIN, PROMISING STEM-CELL TREATMENTS WOULD BE BLOCKED BY FEDERAL REGULATION. And they were right! “The purpose of employing autologous cells is to prevent rejection of histo-incompatible cells by the patient’s immune system. But it’s also possible that these new therapies could slip from our grasp, at least in the US. If we’re not careful, these therapies could become the exclusive domain of the pharmaceutical industry, as regulated by the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This could push the availability of this tool kit 15 to 20 years into the future. The opportunity-cost in terms of morbidity and mortality could be catastrophic.”